The present invention relates generally to an adjustable mounting assembly for mounting instruments on a support post, and is particularly concerned with an assembly for mounting medical instruments on IV hanger poles and other convenient support members in a medical environment.
In the medical field, a large number of instruments are commonly used for both patient monitoring and treatment. Electronic instruments such as heart monitors are used to monitor various physical parameters, for example, while other instruments are used to deliver predetermined doses of medication to patients. Since these instruments are relatively fragile, they must normally be clamped to an appropriate support structure while in use to maintain the instrument in close proximity to the patient and avoid the risk of the instrument being inadvertently moved or dropped. Often, such instruments are secured to vertical support posts of the type used to hang IV (intra-venous) medication pumps.
Various clamping or locking devices have been devised in the past for holding such medical instruments on specific support structures, such as vertical IV hanger poles, table tops, bed rails and so on. However, these have often not provided the desired degree of adjustability in instrument orientation, for example to allow the care-giver to easily monitor the output readings on the display and to make adjustments as necessary, and also normally only allow the instrument to be secured to a support structure in a specific orientation, such as upright or horizontal.
In Gorton et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,299, a clamp fixture is provided which has a first part for clamping onto a support such as an upright pole, and a second part rotatably connected to the first part for rotation about an axis transverse to the support pole and lockable in any selected orientation. The second part has arms for rotatably supporting medical instruments. However, any adjustment involves release and subsequent re-locking of two separate locking mechanisms, and is therefore relatively complex.